NORRISTOWN — Football officials aren’t any different than any of the other men and women dressed in those black-and-white striped shirts with whistle in hand, or those men and women in blue. Whatever the sport, they get screamed at, booed and hissed … even if they make all the right calls, even if they call the perfect game.

But what few of those frenzied fans who do all the howling realize is how good the members of the Norristown Chapter of the Pennsylvania Football Officials Association really are before they wash, fold and put away their attire for the winter.

Last week, for the umpteenth time, they held their annual banquet down at the Holy Savior’s Club in Norristown. And while it just may be a social of sorts before they take a seat for dinner, it’s all about remembering others who motivate them, who help make their often unappreciated jobs that much easier each season … about recognizing outstanding individuals in and around the game of football.

Pannella, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Steve Pannella, was presented the Sportsmanship Award — presented to the player who stood out among his peers by demonstrating the highest ideals of sportsmanship on the field with his leadership, clean play, language, support of teammates and positive actions toward opponents.

“He was fully into the spirit of the game,” presenter Tom Drakeford said of Pannella, who was in on over 100 tackles in helping the Phantoms qualify for the District 1-Class AAA playoffs for the second straight season.

Pannella, named a Mini Max winner by the Maxwell Football Club last week, carries a 3.7 grade-point average in the classroom. He was joined at the festivities by head coach Bill Furlong.

McGill, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Jeff McGill, was presented the Walter Gould Award — presented to an individual who works unselfishly, and without compensation, to assist their school or local youth league. McGill, who has been the Rams’ “ball girl” for three seasons, drew a round of applause from the officials when accepting her award.

“You never had to worry about her being there when we needed to put another ball in play,” Drakeford said of McGill, who carries a 96 grade-point average. “We never had to look for her because she was always at the right spot at the right time, and she was such a pleasure to work with.”

“We’ve called Sydney our director of football operations at Spring-Ford,” said head coach Chad Brubaker, who along with assistant Steve Schein sat with the McGill family. “Mondays through Thursdays she makes sure everything is ready for us when we arrive for practice and makes sure everything is cleaned up and put away when we were finished. And on Friday nights, she’s just awesome.”

Wesley, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Dale Wesley, was presented the Art Andrey Scholarship Award – $1,000 to assist an individual with his/her financial obligations in attending college.

Joined at the festivities by head coach Steve Moyer, Wesley was a two-year starter at quarterback for the Indians. He threw for more than 1,000 yards in each season and, as both Moyer and Drakeford noted, is an outstanding leader both on the field and in the classroom.

McDaniel, accompanied by his wife Becky, was presented the Silver Whistle Award — given to the school for its handling of game-day functions, ranging from the treatment of officials to the behavior of its players, coaches and fans.

“Mickey and his staff make every Friday night an enjoyable experience for us,” Drakeford said.

Spring-Ford has been presented the Silver Whistle Award 10 times since 2000 and 12 times overall.

The officials also dedicated their program to the late Robert “Bob” Hogga, who touched and impacted countless young athletes in the Phoenixville community for well over 20 years before he passed away last July. … Treasurer Ricky Falcone also noted the annual Nick Pergine Football Clinic – the longest running clinic for high school football officials in the Mid-Atlantic Region – will be held May 17-19 at Wildwood Crest, N.J. More information on the clinic is available at www.nickperginefootballclinic.com.